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Rhonda Hewer

@rhondahewer

MEd, Lecturer @WLU, Math Consultant @WRDSB, Learner, @LeadandDesign Fellow, Master of Creative Disobedience and Disruption, Adventure Seeker, Hiker, Kayaker

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03.05.2024
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Latest posts by Rhonda Hewer @rhondahewer

Just finished watching the Lilith Fair documentary on CBC Gem, what a beautiful tribute to women’s talent, artistry, and courage. πŸ’œβœ¨
It captured how music became a supportive space to break barriers, lift each other up, and change the industry. Truly inspiring. #LilithFair #WomenInMusic

20.09.2025 21:35 πŸ‘ 0 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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Thank you to @wr-dsb.bsky.social #MathFacilitators for this gr8 idea. Ss in random groups of 4 got to know each other by creating a WODB about themselves.
1 thing unique to you
1 thing unique to two of you
1 thing unique to three of you
1 thing that all 4 of you have in common
#mtbos #edusky

04.09.2025 00:50 πŸ‘ 1 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

Started Day 1 in a sharing circle. As I suspected, Ss were shy to share. It became more of a community circle and allowed them to ask qs about a new school and being in Gr 7.
Tomorrow I am going to focus on talking about intelligent failure and psychological safety.
#edusky #eduskychat #mtbos

04.09.2025 00:42 πŸ‘ 0 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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Here we go! Day 1 of the school year. Leaning into the discomfort of starting the year with blank walls and no desks! New school = construction zone and limited supplies - kind of forces you to rethink how we can do this differently!
#edusky #mtbos #eduskychat

03.09.2025 10:17 πŸ‘ 4 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

🧡4/4
As coaches, we can make the biggest impact not by giving teachers everything at once, but by breaking "all things" into manageable steps, focusing only on 1 or 2 areas at a time and providing detailed year, unit, and/or lesson samples.

#SoMuchToLearn #EduSky #EduCoach #EduSkyChat

01.09.2025 01:34 πŸ‘ 0 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

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This experience has been a powerful reminder: when we coach, we sometimes forget just how many moving parts teachers are juggling, especially when they’re new to a subject or grade.

#EduSky #EduCoach #EduSkyChat

01.09.2025 01:34 πŸ‘ 0 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0

🧡2/4
I have spent my summer immersed in research, resources, and planning. But the sheer amount of β€œwhat to know” is overwhelming: curriculum expectations, essential skills, success criteria, quality texts, assessment plans… the list goes on.

#EduSky #EduCoach #EduSkyChat

01.09.2025 01:34 πŸ‘ 0 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0

🧡1/4
This goes out to my fellow instructional coaches: I’m teaching Intermediate Language this year for the first time in my career.

Even with years of experience in coaching, I’ve been reminded how it feels to be new to a subject, a grade, or even to teaching.

#EduSky #EduCoach #EduSkyChat

01.09.2025 01:34 πŸ‘ 0 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0
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How did all this fit in a cubicle?! 11 years of collecting ideas, books, tools, and treasures. Grateful for all I’ve learned from brilliant educators. Headed back to the classroom to explore cross-curricular learning + assessment in the messy middle years.
#edusky
#eduskychat
#eduskyAU
#mtbos

02.07.2025 00:43 πŸ‘ 5 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

These two educators are so amazing.
They continue to inspire me by the opportunities they provide students to flourish while learning and practicing #transferableskills

#EduSky
#EduSkyChat
#EduSkyChatAU

26.06.2025 20:39 πŸ‘ 0 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

It’s Friday.

5 days to go.

Every kid walking through our classroom door is carrying a storyβ€”unfinished, evolving, worthy.

Let’s meet them with eyes that see growth, not grades.

Let’s end the year the way we hope they begin the next:
Confident. Curious. Connected.

#EduSky
#EndStrong

20.06.2025 10:28 πŸ‘ 1 πŸ” 1 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

"He just needs to try harder."

Or maybe... he just needs the right access point.

#EduSky
#mtbos
#iteachmath
#TieredSupport
#MathForAll

19.06.2025 11:01 πŸ‘ 3 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

One assessment. Many ways to show thinking.

Access β‰  lowering the bar.

#EduSky
#EquitableAssessment
#mtbos
#iteachmath

19.06.2025 02:14 πŸ‘ 1 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

Sounds lovely

10.06.2025 10:30 πŸ‘ 0 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

Right. And that is the point I would like to dive deeper into.
Don’t get me wrong, I would love to live in a world where grades and marks are not necessary. I am just wondering if, given the current system we have that demands grades, is there a better way to make them work for learning? πŸ€·β€β™€οΈ

09.06.2025 13:37 πŸ‘ 0 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0

Totally hear that. But I wonder what the instructional moves were after the students received the mark. In transparent, iterative systems, could grades land differently? Also, aside from the Gr6 study Boaler cites, is there newer research involving progressive classrooms that explores this nuance?

09.06.2025 11:35 πŸ‘ 0 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0

11/🧡
I don’t know… it’s a morning rant about one of the things I want to explore when I return to the classroom in September
But am super curious about what others in the education world are thinking/doing…!

09.06.2025 10:18 πŸ‘ 0 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0

10/🧡
Unfortunately, grades are a true reality of our current system and society. We need to provide them twice a year and parents and post secondary rely on them. Until the system changes, I am curious if there is a way to use them productively.

09.06.2025 10:18 πŸ‘ 0 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0

9/🧡
So maybe the question isn’t: Should we go gradeless?
Maybe it’s: Should we build transparent, flexible systems where grades inform learning, not end it?

09.06.2025 10:18 πŸ‘ 0 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0

8/🧡
In the traditional model, a grade feels like a black box. Students don’t know how it was calculated or if it’s even changeable. It’s static. Final. That’s the problem.

09.06.2025 10:18 πŸ‘ 0 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0

7/🧡
What if the real issue isn’t the grade itself… but the lack of transparency around it? If students clearly understand:
βœ… How they got the grade
βœ… What they can do to change it
βœ… How it fits into the overall grade
βœ… That they can try again
Would that shift the impact?

09.06.2025 10:18 πŸ‘ 0 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0

6/🧡
But in a progressive classroom, where students get multiple opportunities to revisit and grow, does the grade still carry the same weight? Or could it actually support the learning if handled right?

09.06.2025 10:18 πŸ‘ 0 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0

5/🧡
That research often looked at traditional models where a grade = final judgment. One chance. One shot. The mark is a dead end, not a launchpad. That is demotivating.

09.06.2025 10:18 πŸ‘ 0 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0

4/🧡
Now… I know the research. Grades alone don’t drive learning. Feedback without grades? Much more effective. But I wonder… if that research would be different in a more progressive model of instruction

09.06.2025 10:18 πŸ‘ 0 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0

3/🧡
Parents who aren’t educators might not understand what β€œdeveloping” means. If their child isn’t β€œproficient” yet, they may not know how to help. Or even realize their child can improve. That’s a big risk.

09.06.2025 10:18 πŸ‘ 0 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0

2/🧡
My son is still developing executive function, I’m basically his frontal lobe. So if a teacher does gradeless well, amazing. But if not? It could mean missed cues, less effort, or failing to revisit feedback. That stresses me out.

09.06.2025 10:18 πŸ‘ 0 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0

1/🧡
A colleague recently shared they were returning to the classroom and going #gradeless in math. It made me curious… and honestly, anxious. As both an educator and a parent of a Grade 10 boy, here’s why.
#EduSky #EduSkyChat #mtbos #Onted #EduSkyAu

09.06.2025 10:18 πŸ‘ 0 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0

Yes, love how you named the connection to metacognition and motivation. That shift from compliance to true engagement is everything. Grateful for the dialogue! #EduSky #EduSkyChat

09.06.2025 00:09 πŸ‘ 1 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0
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To ensure T clarity (effect size=0.85) Ss should be able to answer 3 questions:
❓What am I learning today (learning intention)
❓How will I know that I learned it (success criteria) (0.88)
❓Why am I learning this (relevance)
Ss then drive their learning
#EduSky
#EduSkyChat

07.06.2025 18:54 πŸ‘ 6 πŸ” 2 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0
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Already so many aha moments and I have barely began digging into this book.
Specifically appreciate the continuum of engagement and recognizing that for too long education has defined engaged Ss by the participating column and missed that disrupting and avoiding are active strategies for Ss
#EduSky

07.06.2025 14:29 πŸ‘ 2 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 1